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The “Fabrication: Bits and Atoms” class at the Stamps School of Art and Design teaches students about 3D design and fabrication in different mediums. Abigail Zrike, a current junior in the Stamps School, took the class last winter with architecture professor, Mark Meier. The final project was to create an object using the 3D printers, …

For the 2015 Winter semester, Stephanie O’Malley (the 3D Lab’s resident artist) was again invited to teach a course for the Stamps School of Art & Design. AD240: 3D Modeling & Motion is an entry level course for students to get familiar with basic 3D modeling and animation principles. Students spent the semester learning …

Recently, Nathan Niemi—associate professor for Earth & Environmental Science— approached the 3D lab with a series of floor-plans he had designed in Adobe Illustrator. Nathan and his colleagues (who research neotectonics and structural geology) are working on cabins to be built at their field station in Teton County, Wyoming. The current cabins at their field …

Tom Bessai is a Canadian architect currently teaching at the University of Michigan Taubman College of Architecture & Urban Planning. This past year Tom has been on sabbatical working with Sean Alquist to research hybrid force-active structures—or structures that work under the force of tension. Much like a bungee cord, these structures have two …

At the end of every year, seniors in the College of Engineering are working hard to finish their capstone design projects. These projects are guided by a professor but built entirely by students. Keteki Saoji, a mechanical engineer focusing on manufacturing, took inspiration from Professor Revzen who studies legged locomotion in both insects and robots. …

This Detroit-centric shoe was on display this past weekend at Work • Detroit, a space for sharing the creative work of University of Michigan student, faculty, alumni, as well as prominent creative minds of our time. The idea began in 2011 in an Integrated Product Development (IPD) class at the University of Michigan, and …

The University of Michigan strives to lead its students in both the understanding and creation of knowledge. Applying concepts to real-world scenarios and improving upon them often requires the “making” of objects for the purpose of prototyping function, improving communication of complex concepts, or serving as the end product. Anyone within the University community, …

Pain affects everyone, and is one of the main reasons patients seek medical attention—but the study of pain is significantly restricted by methods of measurement which are rudimentary (how much does it hurt?) and unreliable because it has no accurate, consistent method or baseline off which to measure another person’s perceived pain. Enter Dr. …

Paul Schrems and Nick Turnbull began their collaboration as Turtle Cell (“Untangling your life since 2012”) based on Paul’s idea to create an iPhone case with a retractable mechanism for headphone cords. In November 2011, the pair won the 1000 Picthes Innovations prize at the University, and with the $1000 in prize money began …

Eric Maslowski recently gave a presentation on accessibility concerns for mobile application development. The talk focused on the current accessibility landscape as it pertains to visually rich mobile applications and games, as well as some design guidelines and control schemes created during the development of a mobile game targeted at those with Spinal Cord Injuries.

Of the 96-year life of the University’s Aerospace program, Assistant Professor James Culter has been here for 4, and yet has already produced 3 satellites. Part of their speed, says Joshua Weiss, a senior aerospace engineer and researcher in Cutler’s lab, is the ability to produce designs quickly and cheaply through rapid prototyping. They most …

Genetic algorithms aim to mimic natural selection in the design process. A set of parameters or “genes” characterize a “species” of artifact. Individuals within the species express different values for those genes. A fitness function evaluates each individual’s health. The algorithm works by assigning random gene values for several individuals, evaluating them, discarding the weakest …

These models of solar electric vehicles were designed by students of the UM Solar Car Team, and show the evolution of their designs. The solar panels would be placed where the blue coloring is, providing power to the rest of the car. Now on their 11th car, MSolar is well-practiced in creating successful cars and well-versed …